A new bird for the patch this weeked in the form of a Water Pipit was a bit of a tonic after yet another week of a nagging cough. Not only does this scare away the birds, it's just a bit exhausting. It finally drove me to the Doctor on Friday, and having satisfied himself that it wasn't a chest infection his advice was, and I quote, 'stick with it'.
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| Gadwall - the most numerous duck at Swineham at the moment with 50-120 birds regularly present |
I've been given this advice before when stuck on a crossword, but never before for a cough. Mind you, it beats the advice I got last time I went to a quack with a similar ailment - 'try not to cough' he said. I kid you not.
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| Shoveler: probably the most striking duck at Swineham at the moment. |
So, in the spirit of sticking with it, and trying not to cough, I headed to Swineham yesterday for a quick look around. An uneventful scan of the pits produced the usual ducks in smaller numbers than recent weeks, but further on towards Swineham Point a large-ish pipit flushed from the wet grass and gave a call which narrowed it down to either Rock or Water.
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| Water Pipit: note the prominent pale supercilium and wingbars, extensively yellow bill and unstreaked mantle |
I managed a few flight shots between convulsions which showed a prominent, flared supercilium, unstreaked mantle, clean white underparts with some fine dark streaks, and white outer tail feathers, all good features for Water Pipit.
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| This shot shows clean white, finely streaked underparts and white outer tail feathers. |
The Pipit also went miles when flushed which I seem to remember was a characteristic of the birds we used to go and see at Rainham Marshes when I lived in Kent. The local Meadow Pipits, by contrast, tend to flit around you in a little circle and the Rock Pipits, when present, are generally a bit more approachable. Unless of course you are coughing your guts up on said approach.
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| Another shot of the Water Pipit showing several of the features described above. |
